Villa Stephania

Details

General Description

Villa Stephania occupies a wonderful plot, in a lovely hillside location overlooking the popular Cretan seaside village of Almyrida. The villa is only 1.5 kms from this laid back and picturesque resort, with its many beach side restaurants, shops and useful amenities.

The villa has been built on a large, private, secluded plot of approximately half an acre and benefits from well tended gardens including a large lawned area.The plot is surrounded by olive groves and enjoys views to the sea as well as inland to pine valleys and the majestic White Mountains.

Villa Stephania is peacefully and privately situated at the end of a long driveway off a well surfaced, tarmac road which leads to Almyrida. The villa is modern, spacious, light and airy with a super pool, all surrounded by established gardens containing colourful and scented plants of oleander, bougainvillea and jasmine and to a walled area of olive, cypress and carob trees. Around the pool there are areas for both sun and shade. All of the rooms in the villa are sea facing and all living areas and bedrooms lead to sea facing terraces or balconies. There is an outside eating area for those who like to have dinner whilst watching the stunning sunsets.

A good choice for a family with young children and/or a baby as the owners have provided a host of extra facilities for them. As well as a cot and high chair that you will find in all villas, at Villa Stephania there is also, at no extra cost, a stair gate, a buggy/push chair, a bath chair, bed rails, a baby food mixer and children's cutlery as well as an air-bed suitable for a child to sleep on. Please reserve the facilities you need when making your booking.

Ground Floor

The main front door and two sets of french doors lead from the pool terrace to the open plan, "L" shaped, ground floor living area of Villa Stephania. The dining area and fully fitted kitchen are to the right and a large window above the kitchen sink looks out to the driveway. French doors adjacent to the dining area look out to the pool terrace and the lounge seating (2 sofas and a chair) are arranged in front of another set of french doors so that whether dining or relaxing indoors you can have the pool area in view. This layout allows the outside terraces to join seamlessly with the inside space and sunlight streams in to the villa.

Completing the ground floor accommodation is one of the airy twin bedrooms with plenty of clothes storage space, a hairdryer and another set of french doors opening up to the pool terrace and those glorious views. There is also a shower room with shower, wc and wash basin.

The staircase to the 1st floor is at the rear of the lounge area (see picture gallery).

First Floor

Leading off from the spacious landing are 2 further bedrooms (one double and one twin) and a full bathroom with bath, shower, wc and wash basin. Both of these bedrooms also have hairdryers, plenty of facilities for clothes storage and direct access to the large first floor balcony which is a lovely spot for taking in the views.

External Areas

Villa Stephania stands in a wonderful plot in a great location. The villa, pool and gardens are extremely private and secluded and yet are only a few minutes drive to the lovely sandy beach and facilities at Almirida. Immediately outside the villa is a large sun terrace with a table and chairs for al fresco dining, relaxing with a good book or sipping a cocktail as you watch the sun go down. The gas BBQ is located at one side of this terrace. A couple of steps down brings you to the paved area surrounding the sizeable pool. You can enjoy views of the sea whilst soaking up the sun on a lounger or cooling off in the pool. The gardens at the villa are a particular feature, there is a lawned area which is unusual in this climate and a variety of Mediterranean shrubs and trees. The garden, pool and villa are all maintained to a high standard.

Internet Access

The internet is provided by means of a mobile wi-fi unit supporting up to 5 devices all over the house and balcony area. Access is available on a pay as you go basis and full instructions on what to do are in the Villa Information Book in the house. 15 days or 2 GB costs 20 eur and top ups can be bought from the property manager.

Local Info

NB; all times are approximate and based on average driving and walking speeds.

Prices

Deposit

10% of total rent

Pricing Notes

Prices quoted are in gbp sterling, per week, for up to 6 people occupying the villa and are not per person. The villa can sleep up to 7 with 1 child using an air bed which is available at no extra cost but please request this in advance so the property manager can leave this at the villa for you.

Alternative length of stays of more than 7 nights are accepted and are charged pro rata.

Prices include a host of extras for families travelling with young children, as listed + air- conditioning, a welcome pack, all linen excluding beach and pool towels***, and maid service and linen change.

Low Occupancy Discounts

A low occupancy discountfor a single couple (use of 1 bedroom), of 15%, is available at this villa except for July and August dates.

Not allowed on late availability or special offer prices.

Only one discount per booking allowed.

Loyalty Discounts

If you are a returning client and this is your 3rd (or more) consecutive booking with Crete Escapes or your 2nd separate booking in one season, you will qualify for our loyalty discount. Please quote voucher code LOYALTY5 when asked to do so during the online booking process or let us know when you contact us. Your reduction of 5% will then be deducted from the total price.

Short Breaks

Short breaks are normally only available for a minimum of 5 nights and will be charged at the 7 nightly rate unless otherwise advertised. However, if the number of available days between existing bookings is less than 7 nights we may be able to accept bookings at a reduced rate subject to the owners agreement.

Short breaks are allowed within 3 days of arrival.

Availability

Booking Information

Change-over days are totally flexible but are subject to existing bookings taken either side. If a booking means that the owner would be left with too many "void" days we might not be able to accept it. If this is the case we will contact you without delay to discuss alternatives.

Payment can be made by bank transfer (sterling or euro) or by debit or credit card.

Our travel information provides details of how to get to Crete including flights to both Chania and Heraklion airports.

If you want to book, please use the availability chart above to check your dates, you can then either book on-line, email or call us on 0330 111 0061.

Please note:although the calendars show live availability and you can book on-line, please note that your booking is not confirmed until we have issued a confirmation of booking. You may prefer not to book your flights until we have confirmed the booking.

Low occupancy discounts- unfortunately the online booking system automatically calculates the single couple or small party discount based on the number of people entered onto the booking form and the start day of your rental. There are 2 problems with this:-

a) If you are 2 people but not a single couple, or 3 or 4 people but not 2 + 1 or 2 + 2, the system will have automatically calculated a discount when it is not due. Please make use of the "additional notes" box on the booking form to tell us and we will adjust the price accordingly before we confirm your booking.

b) If your rental overlaps from a discounted period to a non-discounted one (or vice versa), the discount calculated will be wrong. In these cases we have to make the adjustment manually. You can still book on-line but we will need to change the price on receipt of your booking request. If the price increases we will contact you to confirm the new price before we confirm your booking and take your deposit.

Please don't let either of these issues put you off making a booking. The discounts are genuine and our villa owners welcome couples and smaller parties out of high season. We just can't fine tune the booking system to account for these 2 circumstances - sorry.

Reviews

We had a wonderful time at Villa Stephania, thank you. We loved the villa and how well equipped it was for cooking. Yvonne was really helpful. Your information was excellent. We had the chill-out holiday we needed. We're really grateful to you, Yvonne and the villa owner. We'd love to go back! - August 2016.

Just wanted to say thanks to all. We had a superb time at Villa Stephania in Almyrida. The villa was fantastic, comfortable, well equipped, well designed for the sun and shade. Secluded gardens were very attractive as were the views from the balcony over the island towards the sea. We cannot rate it highly enough except to say, we will be back - June 2016.

We enjoyed our stay so much for all the convenience and privacy offered by the villa - October 2015.

Thank you – our stay for the week was most enjoyable. We had a most enjoyable stay and would certainly book again if the dates we have will work. The garden is a delight – what lovely prospects as plants mature. Thank you again for providing such a pleasant villa - October 2015.

I would like to thank you for all your support surrounding our booking for Villa Stephania. It is a really very beautiful villa with lovely gardens and we very much enjoyed our time there. We were also well looked after by the local agent Yvonne Filmer - August 2015.

We returned to Crete after 7 years, to celebrate a 60th birthday - everything has been perfect. It was our first time at Villa Stephania and we couldn't have made a better choice. We wanted peace and quiet and privacy and that is exactly what we have had. The villa was equipped with everything we needed and is a real home from home. The pool and terrace are wonderful and we were really able to relax. Had some lovely trips to the surrounding villages as well as Aptera and Georgioupolis. We also went to the south of the island to Chora Sfakia and Frangokastello and of course to Chania. We enjoyed visits to the beaches at Stavros and to Kalami (far end of Kalives). We have had excellent meals at Elpis in Plaka, Thalami in Almyrida, Monika's in Gavalochori and the little tavernas in Aptera, Kokkino Chorio and Douliana. All the pre holiday advice and information from Crete Escapes was excellent (the 2nd time we have used them) and the service from Yvonne and the team in Crete is outstanding - thank you all so much. We will return to Villa Stephania for sure - but we won't wait another 7 years! - June 2014.

Set in beautiful gardens, very peaceful and private with sea view from your bedroom! Fantastically equipped with everything you could want. Only 3 min drive to Almyrida beach which is shallow, sandy and great for kids. Town has lots of choice for eating out, mini markets, car rental and great bakery. We enjoyed visiting the blue lagoon of stavros beach and chania. Will be recommending to family and friends. Thanks to owners for excellent directions and very helpful cleaner and pool man who visits twice a week - September 2012.

Climate

The Climate

Crete is the most southerly Greek island with an agreeable climate. The tourist season usually starts around April and lasts until the end of October. The spring (April) is a good time to visit for hiking and to see the beautiful flowers.

In early summer (May and June) the temperatures will be climbing steadily to an average in the mid 20's. This is a good time to visit if you don't have to keep to school holiday dates as the climate is very pleasant and there are few crowds.

July and August are the busiest (and hottest) months with tourists from all over Europe choosing Crete for their holiday destination. The north westerly winds usually moderate the temperatures but it's best to make sure your holiday accommodation offers shelter from the hot sun. It goes without saying that the sea will be warm.

September is still high season with warm, sunny days and the sea is still warm. The season draws to a close in October but this is a perfect month for visiting the island as the sea is still warm for swimming and activities such as hiking and visiting the archaeological sites can be undertaken in pleasant temperatures.